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Saturday, July 26, 2014

Here's that quirky piece I teased about yesterday. This was again painted as a gift for someone. I felt a bit like the engineers in a Kindersurprise factory must- Dog, spacecraft, pickle? Sure, I can make that work! Basically, I knew the receiver loved pink and red rose-like flowers and siamese cats...both subjects I am not comfortable with. My strategy was to combine the two and, hopefully, each would hide the flaws of the other. What do you think? Did it work or is it weird beyond weird? I'm thinking I would reframe it next time, do more of a portrait of the cat and only roses behind, no floor-like surface.

As much as I love actually physically painting, there is something to be said about the digital arts. What fun to be able to recompose a painting after the fact? I like this variant much better. Which do you prefer? Or, is it still just too odd? ;)

Friday, July 25, 2014

As much as I enjoy the freedom of painting whatever pleases me at a given moment, one can tend to play it safe and fall in a rut. Taking up the challenge of painting for someone in particular or taking on a commission piece can be a great way to get pushed out of your comfort zone and grow as an artist. Today and tomorrow's painting's were gifts for people dear to me.Today's creation is not a wild step away from what I have already been painting but, because it was for my Dad, I considered adding some details that I would not have thought to normally.

My Father loves nothing more than being alone (Well, with the exception of the mandatory pooch) in nature fishing...for hours. I'm pretty sure he would be quite happy in this scene!

Painting silhouettes is both simple yet, challenging, It's a great way to study the shape of an object. Trees are always very forgiving as they naturally come in so many odd and interesting shapes but, when you start adding people, animals or common structures, you have to pay a lot of attention to detail. A little bump or line in the wrong place and suddenly the object is not as easily identifiable.

I hope you enjoyed today's creation. Tomorrow's is much quirkier and outside of my comfort zone- see you then!

Friday, July 18, 2014

It's been brutally hot recently but, yesterday, grey clouds rolled in with a sweet, cool wind. I'd love to say my mood remained sunny (the cool and rain were welcome after all) but, I found myself feeling like the sky was looking. Normally, no matter how I am feeling, my paintings tend to be bright and cheerful but, yesterday, my mood broke through. I started by trying to make a couple of bright rainbow butterflies but, they did not turn out so I decided to go with along with the weather and produced a couple dramatically moody pieces.

This first piece is quite large (12x16 inches) and a lot darker than my usual paintings. I had a lot of fun playing with texture here and pulled out almost every trick in my bag including masking, washes, splatter, removing paint and even salt. It's always so exiting to see what the outcome of all these techniques will be as, so much of it is completely out of the artists control!

This painting is a bit smaller at 12x12 inches but, still huge for me. As much as I am enjoying working on larger papers, one unforeseen problem I've encountered is not being able to fit them on my scanner. So, until I track down a wide format scanner (or the battery for my good camera!), please excuse my wobbly, discoloured iPhone photos!For this piece, I was inspired by a photo I came across of a bright golden field against wildly dark and moody skies; all it was missing was poppies. I love the drama and energy of poppies, I am determined to one day capture one accurately but, for now, I will have to be satisfied by conveying their essence. I hope you enjoyed. Have a lovely weekend!P.S. I added a Gallery Page tab which can be found just bellow my header. Let me know if you like what you see, I always enjoy comments. ;)

Tuesday, July 15, 2014

Hello again to my old subscribers! For those arriving here from the Art Walk, you are indeed in the right place. I finally got the framework of my blog tidied-up and my Watercolour creations will be coming soon. While I finish up the gallery portion of the blog, you can take a peak at my gallery on Flikr, Pin your favourites on Pinterest, or check out my art page on Facebook (Don't forget to like the page so you don't miss future additions.) See you very soon!

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Nadia at the Art Walk 2014

About Me

Born and raised in Edmonton, I have been creating in one way or another all of my life I have toyed with nearly every art or craft medium imaginable but, I have happily settled on watercolour as my creative outlet.I am a mother of two and have finally returned to painting now that my children are both in school. I love bold colour, observing nature on a macro scale and playing with interesting angles.
The central theme to all my art is the pursuit of joy. Sometimes I paint things that spark joy in me and sometimes it is simply the process of creation that brought me that spark. I hope when you see my work you will feel that joy and perhaps fall in love again with this beautiful world. ;)